2014 in words: 'Culture' joins 'vape' and 'exposure' as words of the year

The dictionary landed on culture by figuring out which of their most popular words experienced the biggest spike in lookups this year compared to last year.

"Culture is a word that we seem to be relying on more and more. It allows us to identify and isolate an idea, issue, or group with seriousness," Peter Sokolowski, editor at large for Merriam-Webster, said in a statement. "And it's efficient: we talk about the 'culture' of a group rather than saying 'the typical habits, attitudes, and behaviors' of that group."

Merriam-Webster says culture is typically a big word around back-to-school time, but they think people looked it up beyond the school year because phrases such as "celebrity culture," "rape culture" and "company culture" graced headlines nationwide.